Hands-on with the Roidmi F8 Storm, a Xiaomi-backed cordless vacuum cleaner
The Roidmi F8 Storm is a cordless vacuum that’s gotten quite a bit of attention. There are three likely reasons: an aggressive and effective PR campaign, its association to Xiaomi, and the F8 Storm’s low(ish) price.
The Roidmi F8 Storm is a cordless vacuum that’s gotten quite a bit of attention. There are three likely reasons: an aggressive PR campaign, Roidmi’s association with Xiaomi, and the F8 Storm’s low(ish) price.
That PR campaign is why you’ve heard about the F8 Storm from CNET, Forbes, Fox, The Verge, and ourselves — even before the product has launched. The Roidmi F8 Storm is still an Indiegogo project at the time of this writing. The brand is associated with Xiaomi’s Eco-chain enterprise, giving it the Xiaomi halo of making good products at low prices.
So how low is low? The lowest Indiegogo package is US$289 for an F8 Storm, with an estimated delivery in August. Stocks are limited though, and you might end up having to back the US$319 package.
I’ve had a Roidmi F8 Storm for about three weeks now. The machine is actually quite all right, except for one thing I’ll write about at the end. In the meantime, I don’t think I should rate a product that hasn’t even hit production yet, so consider this a hands-on instead of a review.
It’s pretty, but there’s a reason they don’t make cleaners in white
The Roidmi F8 Storm is pretty right out of the box, with its minimalist white body and smooth curves. But after using it, you realize why you don’t see a lot of white vacuums. White gets dirty. Easily. My F8 Storm has a few black smudges from cleaning, so don’t expect yours to stay pristine for long. Its curvaceous body also means you can’t lean it on anything. Even when lying down, it’ll fall to one side.
Scuff marks show up easily on the white body.
Roidmi includes a magnetic holder, which I didn’t try. You’re supposed to stick it on a sticker that you stick on the wall. My wall has weak paint, which has torn off before, so this is not an experiment I’d like to run. However, just playing around with the holder makes it clear how it works.
The magnetic holder doesn’t have a clasp or latch to prevent the F8 Storm from sliding completely off.
The holder magnetically attaches to the F8 Storm, but it’s not powerful enough to hold onto it. If you mount the magnetic holder too high, for example, the F8 Storm will slide downwards and off. You have to mount the holder low enough so that the F8 Storm can stand on its roller brush. The magnetic holder will then help to lightly grasp the F8 Storm and prevent it from falling over on its side.
You’re supposed to stick a supplied sticker on the wall, then stick the magnetic holder onto that sticker surface.
Better for smaller apartments
The F8 Storm is light at 1.5kg. The Dyson V10, which I just reviewed, weighs 2.5kg. But there’s heft, and there’s dexterity. The V10 is heavier, but it’s more ergonomic, so using it isn’t a burden. The F8 Storm’s curvy handles and weight distribution aren’t as comfortable to handle.
It looks nice, but it isn’t very comfortable to handle.
Roidmi advertises that the F8 Storm gets up to 55 minutes on a single charge. Well … yes, and no. I vacuum my place on the ‘standard’ gear (130W) and get about 25 to 30 minutes before it dies. Roidmi tells me it’s on the lowest 80W power mode that you can get up to 55 minutes. The 180W maximum power mode will last 10 minutes. You can cycle through the standard and high settings on the machine, but to get to the lowest setting you’ll need to use the Roidmi app.
The F8 Storm connects to the Roidmi app via Bluetooth, and lets you set power settings, as well as monitor the HEPA filter.
The F8 Storm’s soft woven nylon roller brush attachment doesn’t grip onto the ground as tightly as the Dyson V8 and V10. If you want to use the carbon fiber brush, you’ll need to remove the soft woven nylon brush and attach it. That’s a slight hassle so I’ve kept the soft woven nylon brush on most of the time. The attachment has nice LED lights, which automatically turns on in dark areas. The anti-mite brush is an optional accessory and didn’t ship with my F8 Storm.
You’ll have to manually swap the two different brush heads.
The F8 Storm’s small bin gets full after one round of vacuuming my home. My flat measures 1,400 square feet, if you have a place larger than that, you might run out of bin space or battery before you’re done. The bin is easy to empty; you release the entire bin and simply open it over a trashcan. A HEPA filter sits in the same bin, which you’re supposed to replace once in a while. If you connect the Roidmi app, it can remind you when to change it.
The small bin gets full after one round of cleaning my 1,400 square feet flat.
The bin is quite easy to pop out and empty.
You can also disassemble the bin to clean. You’ll have to change the HEPA filter once every so often.
The Roidmi F8 Storm is actually quite alright — except for one caveat
I think the Roidmi F8 Storm is alright. With its smaller bin and 25 to 30 minute runtime on the ‘standard’ setting, the F8 Storm is more suitable for smaller apartments. It’s not as much of a pleasure to use or as fully featured as the Dyson Cyclone V10, but the cheapest version of that machine costs S$899. The Roidmi F8 is considerably cheaper at S$319. And you can get it here from Lazada.
If you pop by your local Best Denki or Courts, however, you’ll find vacuums that cost less than the F8 Storm — even cordless ones. Whether they’re any good is another matter altogether, but they offer something the F8 Storm can’t yet — an easy way to service your machine. And this is the caveat that I think potential owners should think about.
The F8 Storm comes with a one-year warranty, but right now, Roidmi has no customer service centers in Singapore. At the moment, Roidmi says F8 Storm owners can contact customer service through email (overseas at roidmi.com). And they don’t rule out having Singapore distributors in the future, who can help take care of the machines.
If you choose to invest in a Roidmi F8 Storm then, you should know that there’s no easy way to service one if it breaks down. That’s beside the standard risks you take when backing an Indiegogo or Kickstarter project. (Something my colleague can tell you all about.) Those are things you don’t have to worry about if you get a vacuum from the store.
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